Stopping to Smell the Pool Tables
by wtchcool
Summary: Jamie grinned. "We're taking the night off. Go change in the alley and meet me inside." One-shot written for The Red Fedora who asked for "Something funny and lighthearted - maybe Orwell forcing Vince to have fun - take a night off."


"Stopping to Smell the Pool Tables"

By Wtchcool

Dedicated to The Red Fedora, who was the first to review Chapter 2 of "THE WIZARD OF KOZ."

Disclaimer: If I owned "The Cape," Season Five would be just as spectacular as Season One.

"How much further, Orwell?" the Cape rasped into his headset, as he hurried through the shadows.

"One more block west," she instructed her partner.

The vigilante came to a halt when he spotted his friend up ahead and discovered his destination was a pool hall named _Sammy's_.

"What the hell is this?" he asked, confused, as a backpack was thrust into his arms.

"A surprise," Jamie grinned. "We're taking the night off. Go change in the alley and meet me inside."

~VF~

"Well, you had me fooled," Vince admitted as he, now in civilian clothes, stepped up to the foosball table. "What's the occasion, Jamie?"*

"ARK Corporation was forced to sell the _Palm City Herald_ to Isaiah Clines, who is still alive, thanks to you." Yet another of her father's assassins had been foiled by the Cape. Amazingly, Chess hadn't gone after the judge that had ordered the sale. "I'd say that's a pretty good reason to celebrate," she added, not taking her eyes off their game for a second.

Vince grunted in acknowledgment, his attention mostly focused on the ball until—

_Bzzz, _his phone signaled an incoming text. Orwell took advantage of his distraction to score a goal.

"That's cheating!" Faraday complained.

"Not my fault if you can't concentrate," the blogger smirked. "Besides, if I wanted to cheat, I'd have caused the distraction."

The ex-cop shook his head in mock-exasperation as he checked who had texted him.

_Think you need to investigate Ms. Levithan._

He snorted as he composed a reply.

_Nice try, but you're not getting out of your trig homework, Trip.**_

"Is everything okay?" Orwell asked, as her best friend pocketed his phone.

"Oh, yeah, my teenager is sulking; all is right with the world," Vince reassured her as they approached the bar and signaled the bartender for two beers.

"I offered to help him with his trig homework," she reminded him.

"I know what your idea of help is. He won't learn the subject if you do it for him."

"So what's the big deal? Vince, when was the last time you had to use trig?" the brunette asked.

"Not the point—no shortcuts," he insisted. "And I want a rematch." He sipped from his mug. "And after I cream you at _that_, we're playing pinball 'cause there's no way you're going to beat my top score."

"I can't believe this place even has a pinball machine; it's 2015, for crying out loud."

"You see? You hate any game that doesn't involve computers," the blond teased.

"Oh yeah, think you're so hot, Mr. Used to Play Football in High School? Bet I can beat you at pool. Loser has to buy the next round."

"You're on."

~VF~

"Thank you," Vince said to his friend as they sauntered out of the pool hall later that evening.

"For what?" Jamie asked.

"For reminding me that there's more to life than always pursuing the next objective; that we need to stop and take time to enjoy what we've accomplished. I needed a night off."

"I think we both did." She was quiet for a moment. "I can't remember the last time I had someone I could just hang out with. It feels good." She hailed a cab to take her back to her loft, and then paused as she opened the door. "Goodnight, Vince."

"Goodnight, Jamie."

***Remember, this is season five. He knows her secret by now. **

****Yep, Trip knows Vince's secret, too.**

**Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed it, Red! Not sure whether I've hit the mark on this one, but I did try.**

**As always, feedback is welcome.**

**Didn't give backstory on the referenced reveals because 1) I've done them in other fics and I don't want to beat a dead horse and 2) the reveals themselves would not have been fluffy and I didn't want to spoil the mood. **

**If there are any Pence (Peter/Vince) fans reading this, please check out my current fic, "Black Bird; Green Arrow."**


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